


another light lost from your face

by Winchestnuts



Category: All For One (Web Series)
Genre: Break Up, Dialogue Heavy, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Getting Together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-24
Updated: 2016-04-24
Packaged: 2018-06-04 03:33:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6639706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winchestnuts/pseuds/Winchestnuts
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dorothy updates the Inseparables. Things are going well.<br/>Connie returns to Dumas after Thanksgiving. Things are going awfully.</p>
            </blockquote>





	another light lost from your face

 “So yeah, Alex and I talked, and we’re hopefully almost okay. I think she’s still pissed off about...everything, but she tried to persuade me to learn Krav Maga in case Miller breaks in again. I guess that means she cares, right?” Dorothy’s bites back a hopeful smile.

_canonicallyace: well in any case, it’s lovely to see you smiling again_  
_breton: was gonna say something rude, but beth ruined it_  
_breton: DAMMIT BETH_  
_breton: stop making me feel things_  
_canonicallyace: sorry_  
_breton: i forgive you_  
_canonicallyace: even if you are ruining my reputation_  
_akari^89: FINALLY_  
_akari^89: I MISS ALEX_

“Well, I have it _in writing_ that she wants to go to lunch with Portia on Sunday. I mean, that’s like an unbreakable vow, right? She _has_ to be friends with me now, all of my douchebaggery aside.”

_breton: and there was much douchebaggery_  
_ai_firestarter: WHAT ABOUT ARIANA?_  
_chiefofmemes: and ariana?_

“A no-go at the moment, I’m afraid. According to Alex, Portia finally bit the bullet and tried calling her. No reply. I’m kind of worried about her. So are Alex and Portia. The ridiculous thing is, if Ariana were here, she’d be reacting to her own vanishing tricks with jokes about being holed up in some secret lair or whatever.”

Trying and failing not to grind her teeth, Dorothy continues, “ _But_ look what Alex told me to tell you.”

Grinning, Dorothy scoots back in her chair to reach for her phone. She holds it up to the webcam.

 _Give my love to the Inseparables :P_ , the phone reads.

There’s a moment of complete radio silence from the Inseparables, and then all hell breaks out in the chat. Even Breton allows himself an undignified keysmash, albeit a short one. Scraping a loose lock of hair back into her beanie, Dorothy laughs, wondering if things are finally looking up.

Then the door opens.

Dorothy spins round, expecting another impromptu appearance from Miller, or maybe a visit from the elusive Rick the Dick. Or, if this really is the fairytale today has felt like since Dorothy met up with Alex, Ariana’s return.

Connie stands in the doorway. Her hair, clothes and make-up are, as always, perfect. But her hands are shaking slightly and there’s the hint of a cut on her lip from where she’s been worrying it with her teeth. And, when Dorothy looks closer, she can see the wetness of Connie’s eyes, dangerously close to spilling over.

“Hey Dee,” she manages weakly.

“Connie? What’s...what’s up?” Immediately after speaking, Dorothy curses herself. _What’s up?_ What the hell is that? Woman up, Castlemore. “I mean, you look kinda...well upset, but if upset managed to get itself in a fight with another emotion and ended up punched in the face and doomed to watch puppies die for the rest of its life. And, I am definitely gonna stop talking now. You – you talk. If you want to.”

_breton: smooth_  
_canonicallyace: oh dear_  
_chiefofmemes: breton i s2g_  
_chiefofmemes: connie are you okay?_  
_chiefofmemes: we love you connie_  
_canonicallyace: seconded_  
_breton: ..._  
_canonicallyace: ..._  
_breton: ...thirded_

“Um, no, it’s fine. I’m fine. I am completely, one hundred percent fine,” Connie says. She closes the door behind her, and locks it. The two of them have become obsessive about it since The Anton Incident.

Connie collapses onto the floor besides her suitcase. She swallows once, then unzips the case and begins to unpack her clothes, tossing them onto the sofa angrily.

“It’s not like I thought Thanksgiving was supposed to be a family holiday, or that my girlfriend was supposed to be a part of said family. It’s not like I made my parents wait for three hours. Three hours. Stuck sitting at a table while the turkey got cold, feeling like something out of an episode of _Friends_. Then I Monty finally picks up her phone, and says she forgot that I invited her to dinner.”

“Oh shit,” Dorothy says. Standing up, she crosses the room towards Connie. As she approaches, she hovers, unsure of whether to reach out or not.

Connie looks up at her with wide eyes and suddenly it’s all Dorothy can do to restrict herself to gently squeezing her roommates shoulder as opposed to dragging her into a bear hug, afraid of how that might be interpreted.

“And then,” Connie whispers, leaning into Dorothy’s hand. “Monty said she was out with some friends. But when I can’t talk to her because I’m busy with school and Psi Pi Alpha things, it’s suddenly the end of the world. So I told her I was tired of the double standards. And I was. We’ve had the fight so many times.”

“I’m sorry, Connie.”

_ai_firestarter: poor connie_  
_ai_firestarter: maybe we should go. i don’t think anyone should be watching this._  
_chiefofmemes: you’re right_  
_breton: buh-bye_  
_breton: it’s just getting interesting_

“Oh, it gets better,” Connie says shrilly. “I...I broke up with her.”

_akari^89: yeah i’m logging off  
canonicallyace: me too, message me if anyone wants to talk or needs anything_

“Crap. Oh Connie.”

“Dee, I...I don’t know what to do now.” Taking Dorothy’s hand, Connie stands up and walks towards the sofa.

_breton: pull a gone girl on your ex_

“Not now, Breton,” Dorothy says, shutting down her computer.

* * *

 

“Hey guys,” Dorothy says, her face so close to the computer that she’s pretty sure the Inseparables could count her pores if they wanted to. And let’s face it, most of them have probably done weirder.  Which doesn’t exactly warm her to the thought of asking them for advice, let alone telling them everything that happened last night. “So...um, something kind of...odd happened?”

_cookiemonster: Hey stranger!!!_  
_breton: well that looks_  
_breton: and sounds_  
_breton: like a walk of shame if i ever saw one_  
_breton: come to think of it_  
_breton: is it still a walk of shame if you’re in your own apartment?_  
_breton: more at ten_  
_sometimesawesome: Shut up Breton._  
_sometimesawesome: Odd? What kind of odd?_

“Me-and-Connie odd. Like, I’m not saying something _happened_ happened, but something totally happened. And now she’s asleep in _my_ bed, and I’m sitting here, panicking. Help.”

_cookiemonster: TELL ME EVERYTHING_  
_sometimesawesome: happy for you, Dorothy, but doesn’t Connie have a girlfriend?_  
_breton: they broke up_  
_breton: but that would make this whole  thing way more amusing_  
_emblue: #DORNIELIVES_

“Guys, it’s not like that. And shut up, Breton.”

_breton: you wound me  
cookiemonster: HOLD UP. so what IS it like?_

“Okay, so after I switched you guys off last night, we got to talking. I swear, I was just trying to be a good friend. God knows I don’t need any more datemate drama after Mr. Edward Cullen meets Ross Geller. No, I am happy as a singleton with really good friends, an Ariana to find, two Inseparables to ship and a cute roommate to do all kinds of cute not-at-all-girlfriend-y stuff with. Or so I thought.”

_emblue: Inseparables to ship? WHO?_  
_emblue: just kidding I know who LOL_  
_emblue: #MONOBLUE4LYFE :)_  
_breton: you think you’re so cute but nah_  
_breton: anyway it’s bluechrome_  
_breton: it’s your own ship name, how can you get it wrong?_

“Anyway guys, back to the shitstorm that is my life right now.”

_cookiemonster: Ha_  
_cookiemonster: You WISH your life was a shitstorm_  
_cookiemonster: But seriously you don’t_  
_cookiemonster: Trust me i should know_

“My point, _Laura_ , is that I thought I was done with drama. So we’re sitting on my bed, talking. By now it’s like ten, maybe eleven. So we’ve been talking for a while. And you know how Connie gets more emotional when she drinks a lot, because she’s a total lightweight?”

Dorothy grins at the thought of the one memorable time she’s seen Connie drunk before. It was the night before Connie was to hand in a particularly tricky paper. Ariana made the mistake of offering her some Dutch courage, and Connie made the mistake of accepting. Then she had proceeded to cry the entire night, and sent a video message of herself singing “True Colors” to the Inseparables.

“Well I may have made the mistake of offering her that gross wine Portia bought for a sleepover. And believe me, it was a mistake.”

_breton: i doubt it  
breton: drunk connie is the best connie_

“Shut up, Breton. So she’s kinda buzzed, but I don’t think anything of it. But then she starts crying, really suddenly. Like she’s been holding it back all evening, and then she just lets loose this...Winchester level of angst.”

_cookiemonster: Eww. Who even watches SPN anymore?_  
_emblue: I DO_  
_breton: of course you do_

“So I lean in to hug her, because I’m not totally inhuman – and before you say it, Breton, yes, I’m sure. But she must have misinterpreted it, because...she kissed me.”

_sometimesawesome: WHAT_  
_emblue: WHAT_  
_cookiemonster: WHAT_  
_canonicallyace: oh my gosh_  
_breton: jfc_

“Yup!” Dorothy exclaims, waving her arms about just to be sure her friends understand the immensity of the situation. “And...I don’t even know where to get started with that. I mean, I did _eventually_ stop her from taking it any further – and believe me she wanted to. But does the fact that I really wanted to go on make me a horrible person? I’m a horrible person, aren’t I?”

_breton: ehh_  
_canonicallyace: of course not_  
_breton: probably_

“I mean, obviously I would never do anything when she’s drunk. But what do I do know? What if she doesn’t remember it? What if she _does_ remember it? Am I the rebound?”

_breton: kinda yeah_  
_cookiemonster: i hate to say it, but_  
_sometimesawesome: Wait_  
_sometimesawesome: Usually I would agree, but Connie really doesn’t seem like the rebound type?_  
_sometimesawesome: And it was her who did the dumping, right?_  
_cookiemonster: Sometimes it hurts being the person who ends things just as much as it hurts being ended with_

“I know. It’s just, I’ve liked her since we first became roommates, you know that. But I really don’t want to be the rebound. Not after, well, you know.”

cookiemonster: You weren’t really the rebound with Anton  
canonicallyace: that’s true. he and alex dated a really long time ago  
sometimesawesome: Unless you mean you were a rebound from when his relationship with the evil forces was on a break.  
sometimesawesome: In which case, yes.

“Thanks guys. You sure know how to cheer me up,” Dorothy says wryly. “So I shouldn’t do anything, should I? I should just sit back, and let this pass over me, and probably regret it when I’m sixty-two and single, and-”

_breton: why 62? that’s very specific_  
_emblue: um GUYS_  
_emblue: are we just gonna ignore..._  
_cookiemonster: Shut up em_  
_cookiemonster: Don’t ruin it_  
_breton: please ruin it_

“Guys, what are you...?”

“You talking about me, Dee?”

Dorothy swivels wildly in her chair, nearly falling off in the process.

Barefaced and smiling softly from the hood of her salmon pink hoodie, the Connie of today makes a stark contrast from the Connie of yesterday. She looks tired, but the light is back in her eyes. And although her hair is a messy halo, plastered against her forehead and neck, her hands are completely steady.

“Hey! Hey, Connie. I was just – we were just...” She finds herself a little less able to speak when Connie sits beside her and takes her hands.

“Is this okay?” Dorothy nods, mouth agape. “Right. Great. So, I’m sure after last night, you’re probably confused. And I wanted to say I’m sorry. I should never have compromised our friendship like that, and definitely not while I was completely...well, you know. I put you in a really difficult position and I’m sorry.”

“Right,” Dorothy says, mentally preparing herself for a second – no, third – rejection speech from Connie. She shuts her mouth with a snap, looking down at their joined hands.

“Well, more sorry for my drunkenness and general emotional vulnerability than for actually kissing you. And even if I paid for it with a rather painful headache, I seem to remember that it was a pretty great kiss.”

Dorothy’s head jolts up.

“I heard what you were saying before, about being a rebound and everything. And that is...well, it’s the last thing I would ever want you to be, or to think you were. Because honestly, I really like you, and I have for a long time, even though I shouldn’t have, _before_. I never thought I’d act on it, but now things could be different. Not straight away, maybe. I don’t think I’m over Monty and I don’t think you’re over Miller...Anton...whatever his name is. And if anything is going to happen between us, I want it to be more than an impulsive coping mechanism. I want it to last.”

Dorothy’s mouth hangs open.

“Um, Dee? Are you okay? What are you thinking?”

“I am thinking,” Dorothy breathes. Shit, what is she thinking? “I am thinking that...I would very much like that, Miss Bonacieux.”

Connie’s smile is bright enough to light fires.

“I would like it too, Miss Castlemore.” She bumps her forehead gently against Dorothy’s. “Ouch. Maybe physical affection is a post-hangover activity.”

“Well,” Dorothy says, laughing. “You know what I hear is a great hangover cure?”

_sometimesawesome: Fried food_  
_cookiemonster: Carm says blood, but I think our life is basically a “don’t try this at home” situation_  
_cookiemonster: Coffee is probably best, but I prefer tea_  
_emblue: WTF laura_  
_emblue: and you just drink through the hangover_  
_breton: cheese_  
_sometimesawesome: Breton, no_  
_breton: breton yes_

“Harry Potter movie marathons,” Dorothy finishes.

“It’s a date,” Connie says. “Sort of. A pre-date, if you will.”

“Yeah, um, I’m gonna need that in writing,” Dorothy says. Connie laughs, her almost sly smile wider than Dorothy’s seen it in...well, since she’s known her.

“How about we just seal the promise with a kiss?” Connie replies, her eyes gleaming. When Dorothy nods enthusiastically, she pulls off her beanie, tossing it across the room. Dorothy suppresses a moan when Connie tangles her fingers into her hair, when Connie leans in, ever so slowly, when Connie presses her lips against her own so gently that the pressure feels like water, or fairies, or the light, airy way that Legolas probably kisses.

_cookiemonster: IT’S HAPPENING_

The beep alerts Dorothy to the presence of their audience. Pulling away from her (Roommate? Friend? Girlfriend?) Connie, she turns off the camera with a grin.

**Author's Note:**

> Title is from "Autumn Leaves" by Ed Sheeran because I'm far too lazy to come up with my own titles.  
> Feedback is always appreciated, but please also point out any typos/errors because it's 4am, and this is unbeta'd and I am too exhausted to attempt anymore editing. Thanks for reading.  
> Also if anyone catches the reference to real life D'Artagnan, let me know.


End file.
